In order to improve one's ability on the golf course, there are a number of areas that a player can focus on. For instance correct stance when addressing the ball, proper head and body movement, proper swing, or length of stroke. Different challenges are presented depending on a player's strengths, weaknesses, abilities and physical limits. Although many golfers spend a great deal of time practicing tee-off shots and fairway shots, a great deal of time is actually spent on the green and putting. Despite the amount of time devoted to shots on the green, players often do not spend a great deal of time practicing to improve their putting game despite the fact that their putting ability is key to a successful round of golf.
In general to improve one's putting game, the player must first be able to visualize an imaginary line from the golf ball to the cup and take into account various factors such as slope of the green, wind, conditions of the course etc. The golfer must next be able to position him/herself correctly in relation to the ball, namely the body should be aligned parallel to the putting line. Specifically, the player should position their head directly over the ball with the eyes looking down vertically over the ball during the entire putting stroke. Finally the face of the putter should be oriented at a right angle to the imaginary line, and the putter shaft should move parallel to the imaginary line. One must also ensure that the stroke length/weight is adjusted to accommodate the speed of the green. All of these skills must be put together for the golfer to have a successful putt. There have been a number of devices developed to try and help golfers improve these various skills and thereby improve their putting game.
Prior art practice devices for putting have been devised to address some of the afore noted problems. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,458,041 issued on Oct. 1, 2002 to Brandt relates to a golf ball putting device used by a golfer to practice a line of sight directly over the top center of a golf ball when putting the ball. By practicing with the device, the golfer enhances his or her skill in alignment of sight over the top of the golf ball with improved putting skills. The golf ball putting device includes an upright support having a vertical lower portion, a curved middle portion and a horizontal upper portion. The lower portion can be inserted into a ground surface or inserted into a stand. The upper portion includes a forked end. The forked end includes a first fork arm and a second fork arm with an eye alignment opening there between. Ends of the first fork arm and the second fork arm are joined together by an elongated upper sight alignment member. The upper sight alignment member, when properly positioned, is parallel to the direction of travel of the golf ball when it is putted. Suspended from opposite ends of the upper sight alignment member are a pair of suspension chains. Lower ends of the chains are attached to opposite ends of an elongated lower sight alignment member. When the upper and lower sight alignment members are placed above the top of the golf ball and the golfer's line of sight aligns the upper sight alignment member above the lower sight alignment member, then the golfer knows his or her line of sight is directly above the golf ball.
The invention disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,458,041, however, requires the player to constantly adjust the device by pulling the device out of green and repositioning it to the desired position. Furthermore, this device does not allow the player to make comparisons between shots to develop consistency of attempted shots so as to provide a reference point and therefore help the player with length of stroke.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,303,926 which issued on Apr. 19, 1994 to Owens et al relates to a portable golf swing practice device. The practice device includes a weighted base and an upstanding flute guide post with a positioning bar adjustably mounted between ear portions of a post encircling locking jaw which is vertically and rotatably adjustable on the guide post. By setting the positioning bar in any one of a plurality of positions relative to the user, each of the proper body positions and swing motions can be reinforced thus improving the user's stance and wring during actual playing. All components of the device are made of a rigid high strength polyvinglchloride to prevent corrosion.
Carpenter is the owner of U.S. Pat. No. 4,032,157 which issued on Jun. 28, 1977 to Carpenter relates to a base having a lower, ground-engageable portion and an upper portion. An indicator mechanism is formed by first and second perpendicularly intersecting planar members. Each of the outer planar surfaces of the planar members includes a distinctive color, and each color is different from the others. The first planar member defines a plane oblique to the ground while the second planar member defines a plane normal to the ground. The indicator mechanism is attached to the upper portion of the base. When the golfer assumes a golfing stance adjacent the base and gazes at the indicator mechanism, the upper edges of the planar members form an inverted T-shape, the side surfaces of the planar members not being visible.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,720,669 which issued on Feb. 24, 1998 to Pearson relates to the golf club practice device of the present invention which includes a supporting member, an elongated member and a connecting member which form means for perfecting a golfer's swing. The supporting member supports the device on a generally planar base from which a positioned golf ball may be driven such as a golf swing practice area or a plate covered with a mat of a synthetic material. The connecting member makes right angle elbow connections with one end of the elongated member and with the end of the supporting member distal the planar base. The elongated and connecting members are substantially parallel to the planar base. A golf ball may be positioned on the planar base under the connecting member between the elbow connections of the elongated and supporting members so that the golf ball would just be completely visible to the user. A golfer takes a proper stance with respect to the ball so that the elongated member is substantially parallel to the golfer's body when facing the practice device and uses the elongated member which is parallel to the surface of the practice area as a guide to a perfect swing. If the downstroke of the golf swing is not in the an optimum golf path, one of the members of the device is struck with the head or shaft of the golf club. With frequent practice, a golfer using the golf club practice device can learn to avoid hooks, slices, topping the ball and other swing imperfections.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,899,816 which issued on May 4, 1999 to Pearson relates to a golf club practice device consisting of: a generally planar base from which a positioned golf ball may be driven; a supporting member in a first plane extending vertically from the surface of the generally planar base at a distance of eleven to fourteen inches, and having a first end and a second end connected to the planar base; an elongated member in a second plane substantially parallel to the generally planar base, having a length of 30 inches to four feet, and having a first end and a second end distal said supporting member; and a connecting member in the same plane as the elongated member, between the first end of the supporting member and the first end of the elongated member, substantially parallel to the generally planar base, having an elbow connection to each of the first ends, substantially perpendicular to the supporting member and the elongated member, and having a length of four to eight inches; wherein the supporting member, the elongated member and the connecting member form a single one piece construction; and wherein the connecting member is over a golf club head when the club head is addressing a golf ball on the surface of the generally planar base directly under a location on the connecting member as a user starts a practice golf swing that is a critical distance from the elbow connection of the connecting member to the first end of the supporting member and between the first ends of the elongated member and the supporting member so that the golf ball would just be completely visible to the user and wherein the elongated member is substantially parallel to the user's body as the user faces the practice device and serves as a guide for the user to achieve an optimum golf swing in which the golf club is brought back in the direction of the second end of the elongated member and an optimum golf swing is achieved when no part of the device is struck during a complete golf swing.
Prior art devices may focus on head over the ball, but fail to address the length of stoke. Thus a putting practice and training device which helps the player improve his address to the ball namely eye over the ball, having the putter centered to ball, and length of stroke is desirable.